Friday, July 08, 2011

Liverpool are looking at putting together a bid for Arsenal's Theo Walcott after becoming increasingly frustrated in their attempts to land a top class winger.

The Reds saw arch-rivals Manchester United beat them to the signature of their number one target, Ashley Young ,who joined from Aston Villa for £15m. They were also in the hunt for Rennes Sylvain Marveaux but their failure to make a firm offer meant saw Newcastle take advantage of their hesitation and snap up the Frenchman.

Stewart Downing has emerged as an option though Villa has already rejected a £15m offer from Anfield. A second bid is thought to be forthcoming but manager Alex McLeish is adamant that the player is not for sale, meaning that Liverpool will either have offer a vastly inflated price or hope that Downing himself agitates for a move.

Aaron Lennon has been another target with the Liverpool trying to benefit from a reported rift between the England international and his manager at Tottenham, Harry Redknapp, though any differences of opinion appear to have been resolved. The Merseysiders are now considering a move for Walcott after the player was linked with a move to Chelsea on the weekend.

The 22-year-old is understood to be happy with life at the Emirates Stadium though that could change should both Samir Nasri and Cecs Fabregas follow Gael Clichy out of the exit door, as expected. Arsene Wenger would surely not countenance selling a fourth first team regular though Liverpool will attempt to sweeten the deal by including Joe Cole as a makeweight. While the former Chelsea star has been in desperately poor form for the past 12 months, Wenger is known to be an admirer of the trickster and a return to familiar surroundings in London could see the two-time Premier League winner find his magical feet again.